'Up the Country': Letters Written to Her Sister from the Upper Provinces of IndiaEden, Emily
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'Up the Country': Letters Written to Her Sister from the Upper Provinces of India
Eden, Emily
Eden, Emily, 1797-1869 -- Correspondence; India -- Description and travel
Yes! we are in for it now. All the old discomfort, and worse; for we
left the nice autumnal air blowing at the Fir Tree, with the fern waving
and the trees looking red, and brown, and green, and beautiful--and now
we are in all our old camel-dust and noise, the thermometer at 90° in
the tents, and the punkah going. We received the officers of the escort
and their wives, after church, which was hot work, but I am rather glad
we have so many ladies in camp: it makes it pleasanter for the
gentlemen, and at the different stations it is very popular. Last year
there were only F. and me. In ten days, when we shall have a fresh
cavalry regiment, there will be at least twenty, and about twelve of
them dancers, which is lucky, for we hear of an awful number of balls in
prospect.
They were a ladylike set that we saw to-day; one of them a striking
likeness of you--a thing that I deny to everybody else, but still I do
see it; and perhaps it is better than nothing.
Munny Majra, Monday, Nov. 4.
We began riding part of the march to-day, and the horses go very well,
considering they have had a rest for seven months. My horse is such an
angel! I really like him with a sort of minor Chance sentiment.
Umballa, Thursday, Nov. 7.
E. N. and Mr. G. met us this morning, and rode in with us, and in the
afternoon we went to see E. N.'s house, which he has furnished very
nicely, quite in his mother's style.
A Captain B. arrived from Cabul, with one or two others, and are to
march with us to Kurnaul. They all deny the report of the army ever
having suffered further distress than a want of wine and cigars, and
they are all looking uncommonly fat.
Captain D., of G.'s body-guard, brought back three of the sheep with
which he left us last year, and the 16th are bringing back in safety
their pack of foxhounds. That does not look like having undergone great
privation. Captain B. brought me two shawls from Sir W. C., very pretty
ones--at least we should have thought them so, before we were spoiled by
plenty.
Shah-i-bad.
Mrs. B. arrived last night to meet her husband. She did not know he was
come, so she went straight to E. N.'s bungalow--the usual method with
ladies travelling dâk--and he found her there when he went home from
dinner.
He said he had given up the house to her and gone into a tent, and that
the two little children had arrived with their dear little stomachs much
discomposed by the journey, and had spoilt the sofa whose cover I had
admired in the morning.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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